Spirited Again
by suicune141
Summary: Chihiro makes a return visit to the spirit world and bath house, only to find out she's come to break a curse and protect the non-spirit residents of the world.
1. Prologue

**Spirited Again~**

Prologue

"--hiro.... Chihiro!"

The girl's eyes fluttered and shot open as she felt a hand on her shoulder.  
She turned around in her swivel chair. It was just her father. She stifled a yawn. "Yes, Dad....?"  
He simply stood there, seemingly impatient.  
"Chihiro. You do remember what tomorrow is, don't you? You should really get going on your homework instead of sleeping on it."  
As if this statement was a dose of super-stong caffeine, Chihiro jumped in her seat to alertness. "Oh no...! No way! What am I doing sleeping here?" She whined, her hands flying to her face in shock. She leapt out of her chair and pushed past her father, making a mad dash out her room and downstairs.  
Her mother was seated at the kitchen table, casually picking through a stack of bills or paperwork or such. Chihiro bounded to the table, slamming her palms down on it with such great force that her mother started, letting a few envelopes fly out of her hands.  
Clasping a hand to her chest, "Chihiro! What on earth---"  
Her daughter cut her off abruptly, staring into her eyes. "Mom, Mom! Are we still going to explore that abandoned amusement park tomorrow?"  
Her mother sighed, collecting the recently-scattered envelopes, straightening them out on a pile. When she slowly looked up at Chihiro, vexation was clear across her face. "We've been over this before. You have to get ready for school. I know you have an early dismissal, but you're still going to finish all your homework. Okay? Then I can promise you that we're still going."  
Chihiro groaned, and plopped down into a chair. She wanted more than anything to go right that minute, before the weekend ended. She had been trying to get this message across to her parents, however she was being too discreet about it for them to even take a hint.  
Remembering something, Chihiro suddenly looked back up at her mother. "Hey, Mom?"  
"Hmm."  
"Do we know anyone by the name Haku?"  
Her mother's interest was piqued. She stared off into space for a few seconds, wondering what this could be about, before turning to face her daughter, curiously. "No, actually...Why do you ask, honey?"  
Chihiro rested her chin in her hands, both elbows on the table. She looked very concentrated and confused as she proceeded to explain, "Well, I had this strange dream just now--"  
"You were asleep in your room just now...?"

"Yeah, Mom...but....I had a dream. Everything was dark in it, and...Some boy was talking to me. He said his name's Haku. In my dream, we were talking to each other...and it felt so real........."


	2. Forgotten

**Chapter 1**

**Forgotten**

"CHIHIRO!"

Chihiro groaned. Jeez, it's not like she forgot it was Monday, or anything. Couldn't her parents just leave her to her slumber for five more minutes...

Something tickled her side. Feeling creeped out by this sudden sensation, her eyes flew wide open.

"Crap! I can't believe it! It's really you! You came back!"

An older-looking girl towered above her. The ends of her long brown hair were gathered loosely into a ribbon, her chunky bangs covering nearly half her face. Chihiro was in shock. She recognized this woman, but how?

The girl was dressed in some kind of strange uniform -- a baggy pair of salmon pants and a matching loose-fitting shirt. Chihiro couldn't remember any organization wearing uniforms like this.

She eagerly helped Chihiro to her feet, still smiling. Chihiro looked around cautiously, wondering if she had been kidnapped in her sleep or something. Grassy green hills surrounded her, and off to the distance she could see some sort of massive structure towering into the sky.

"Where am I?"

The girl's face fell in disappointment, her arms flopping lazily to her sides. Looking everywhere but at Chihiro, the young woman sighed. "Damn...Haku warned me this might happen...."

Chihiro's face lit up. "Haku?!"

The girl faced Chihiro once again, looking somewhat amused. "Oh, I see how it is. You remember dragon boy and not me, huh..."

"Dragon boy? What? Who ARE you?"

The woman sighed once again. "I'm Lin. You probably don't remember me, but we met each other almost a year ago, Chihiro."

Chihiro's eyes bugged out. "How do you know my name?" She edged away from Lin nervously, tripping over a rock and falling on her butt.

It was then that she got a good look at this Lin. She had been too anxious and preoccupied with what happened, that she hadn't gotten a good look at this person. She studied her face for a few moments, and vague memories began flooding back to her. Did she work with this Lin? Her memories seemed to be pointing in that direction. Whatever her connection was to Lin, she was certain that she did meet her sometime in the past. Such a strange person...How could she not remember her?

Lin helped her to her feet yet again, and gently patted her on her head. "I think you're starting to remember me, kid. ...Now, come on, this visit can only last so long before that bitch...er, witch Yubaba catches wind of it....She's been even crankier in the months since you've left -- especially after losing to you. I swear, that witch's ego must be the size of her head..."

Yubaba. Witch. Chihiro felt a wave of sensation similar to deja vu upon hearing these words - as if they were keywords that triggered some sort of response in her subconscious. Because one thing was for sure, she definitely wouldn't have though of these names on her own outside this dream.

Lin gently led Chihiro down a path, as they edged closer to that far-off building Chihiro had spotted earlier. "Seeing as you don't really remember much, ask me anything. After all, this may be your last chance to visit the bath house."

Chihiro looked up at Lin as she said those last words. "Bath house? Is that what that...thing is up ahead?" She pointed awkwardly into the distance.

Lin's facial expression didn't budge an inch, and she kept her eyes straight ahead. "Yep, that would be it. Yubaba's bath house....I don't remember how long I've been boarding here, but let me tell you. Too. Long."

Chihiro looked back up at Lin curiously. "Why's that?"

Lin appeared to come out of a short reverie, and turned to Chihiro for the first time since they began walking. "In a way, Chihiro, you're lucky you don't remember about this place....Yubaba is a witch in more than just the magical sense," she sighed, "she's a callous old bat, and she did everything she could to manipulate you into working at her bath house forever. And trust me, her work is equally as heinous as she is."

Before they got too close to the bath house, Lin directed Chihiro down a westward path. "Now, you're to continue down the path until you reach what appears to be wood. The first tree you see, give it a good kick, and a pathway will open up. Take it, and you'll find yourself in a little underground home. That's where you'll be staying for the next couple of days. I want you to go there now, and just stay there until I come and get you. Yubaba's going to be wondering where I went off to, so I have to hurry back now." Lin instructed Chihiro carefully, and then gave the girl a firm push down the path. "Now go on. No one can find out you're here."

Chihiro nervously walked away, glancing back over her shoulder a few times as Lin saw her off. What was going on...this still didn't make any sense at all...

As instructed, she bounded down the path once Lin was out of sight, all the while wondering to herself if this was really happening.

In a split second, the sky above her clouded over. Chihiro glanced up at the sky, confused. She then spotted some silvery shape wriggling and flailing farther and farther away.

Chihiro felt a sudden jolt pass through her, followed by an inexplicable wave of tranquility. Was it....

No. He was a human, obviously - she spoke to him in her dream.... But she had experienced that same feeling of ecstasy during that same dream...

Was it....

...

Haku?


	3. Remembered

CHAPTER 2: Remembered

The sky was slowly fading to a starry sheet of blue as Chihiro was slumped lazily on a chair.

She had been lazing around her new abode for what seemed like hours, when in fact she had parted ways with Lin a mere two hours before.

Chihiro's eyes darted about the small, underground haven. Its walls were constructed of hardened mud and clay, and the floor was covered haphazardly with scraps of wood. A lack of windows or anything that could bring forth light told Chihiro this haven really was meant to be secret.

Except for a poorly contructed table and chair, a wood-frame bed that looked to be decades old, and the cushioned chair Chihiro was sitting on, the underground room was empty. A shiver ran down Chihiro's spine as she felt the air around her grow cool and damp.

Chihiro began to stare off into nothingness again when she heard voices echoing above. The one voice obviously belonged to Lin, but the other was foreign to Chihiro's ears. Chihiro was wondering whether she should be hiding, when she heard the secret door swing open.

"Just _what_ are you doing, Chihiro?" came Lin's somewhat bored voice. Lin pushed the armchair away from the wall, revealing Chihiro crouched nervously on the ground behind it.

"Come on now, get up. You have no time to waste, Chihiro." Lin brought her to her feet. "You sure like sitting on the ground, huh? I swear, I'll never understand humans... let alone _children_...."

"I- I was just hiding in case someone was about to find me in here..."

"Well, do whatever you want in this little rat hole. But as for what happens outside...."

"That's what we're here to talk about." A stout, elderly woman with an extremely large head appeared in front of Chihiro as Lin walked over to the table.

Chihiro raised her eyebrows, her face pulled into a look of curiosity and bewilderment. Then she gasped, remembering a witch Lin had been talking about earlier, a witch described as everything this woman was. "YUBABA?!"

The woman scoffed. "No, no dearie. That would be my atrocious sister. I'm Zeniba, but you always called me Granny." She stepped up to Chihiro, gently patting her head.

Chihiro was starting to remember now. "Oh! You....the rat baby and...the little birdy..."

Lin swung around to face Chihiro, her eyes wide. "You're remembering...?!"

Everything was flooding back. Sen. No Face. A talking frog. The bath house. A train station. Dragon.

Haku.

"Lin! I can't believe it! I'm back!" The girl bounded to her old friend, gripping her in a tight hug.

Lin laughed a little before pushing Chihiro away. "If you _really_ figured it all out, kid, you oughta know that I'm NOT the hugging type."

Chihiro laughed. "Yeah. Sorry, Lin."

Granny moved to the table, her floor-length dress making her appear to be floating. "I hate to break up this little, happy reunion, Lin, but we should really get down to things."

Lin glanced blankly at her, then began, "Right," she pulled out the single dining chair for Chihiro. "Even though you know what's going on and crap, me and Gran here still need to relay some stuff to you, 'kay?"

Chihiro nodded, and without warning, Granny brought her hands together and spread them out wide, making two more chairs appear.


	4. True Form

**Spirited Again~**

CHAPTER 3: True Form

_So things really __**did**__ change since I left......._ Chihiro thought, sprawled awkwardly acorss her bare mattress. After bring Chihiro up to speed, the two women left Chihiro to herself for a while. Granny transported herself back home. Lin would be back any moment with some bedding and clothes.  
Lin's footsteps came softly down the stairs. She approached the table, nearby Chihiro's bed, and dropped the clothes and sheets on it. Chihiro's eyes flew open.  
She screamed, shooting up in bed. "Lin! Why were you creeping around....you scared me..."  
Lin put her hands to her hips. "Please forgive me for trying to not wake you, my gosh."  
Chihiro's face fell, feelings of dejection mixing with her old feelings of uncertainty and even.... fear. Seeing this, Lin sighed, padding up to the young girl.  
She plopped down on a chair beside the bed. "Hey, hey....jeez, don't take me so seriously, kid."  
Chihiro stared at Lin. Eventually she spoke. "Is it true?"  
Lin made an attempt not to frown, instead, giving off a look of pity and concern. "....yeah. Some mindless cronie told Yubaba about how he was helping you. Gives me the creeps just thinking how he even knew all of it..."  
Chihiro briefly looked away, then returned her gaze to Lin. "Does anyone even have a clue as to where he is?"  
Now it was Lin's turn to glance away, shaking her head. "I don't know. If anyone does, they're probably scared out of their wits to say so. Yubaba's really taken back her chokehold on the place.... You can't imagine how many innocent workers she's banished.  
"I think that's why you're back. I think you've been sent to set this old hag straight, and restore things to order.... or at least, to the less-frenzied mess it was before, when you were still here."  
"So you think I'm here for just more than a visit? If that's the case, then what _am_ I here for?"  
"I can't say for sure, but I have a hunch..." Lin trailed off. "I think _Haku_ is the one to bring Yubaba back down to reality - at least, to her less insane reality."  
Chihiro's feeling of heartbreak resurfaced. Its last appearance was on the day she left this world and returned home....and had to leave Haku behind. Though she was only twelve when she first came to this world, and though she was still a young girl at thirteen, she felt so attached to him.  
Chihiro thought she knew the answer, but asked anyway. "But, if it's _Haku_ you need, how do I still fit into all of this?"  
Lin groaned in frustration, and leaned towards Chihiro. She stared directly at her, emotionless. "Haku was not only banished from Yubaba's bath house, but he's been cursed. He's to live the rest of his life in his true form, as a dragon."  
Chihiro's eyebrows furrowed. "How is that punishment? Didn't Haku want to be freed from Yubaba's curse? Didn't he want to return to his true form? I thought that after the curse broke --"  
Chihiro was interrupted as Lin shook her head. "At first, yeah, but.... Jeez, are you clueless? And to think we all figured you _liked_ him...."  
"Of course I-- ...like him." Chihiro mumbled, trailing off.  
Lin sighed, tilting her head upward and leaning back in her seat before continuing. "Yeah. Haku was happy for the most part, but once you were gone....  
"He knew in his heart you'd come back. So he asked Yubaba, pleaded even, for her to place a spell on him that would give him control over his forms, allow him to switch freely between his true form and human form. I think the only reason Yubaba actually did this was because she got an ego boost out of being begged...  
"Anyway. So, this way, when you did come back, he could return to human form. To, you know.... talk to you, and crap." Lin had difficulties talking about romance, let alone friendship.  
"He's been waiting for so long, Chihiro, for you to return. You helped him remember his real identity, and I can safely say," at this, Lin shuddered, "that....he loves you."  
Chihiro didn't seem fazed by this. She seemed to know it all along. At least, in her heart. "I do..... I think I love him, too...."  
Something caught her attention.  
"Wait...what? He's only been waiting for a year, right Lin? I've been waiting just as long as he has..."  
"Chihiro....You remember how when you returned back to your world, it was like you never left? And time didn't even go by?"  
"How did you know...?"  
"Not important. But.... you were in our world for months. And yet, in your world, not even a minute went by. Now, you've been gone from here for nearly a year. In this world, that translates to..."  
Chihiro's face fell as she realized Haku had been awaiting her return for several years. Chihiro then assumed that no one aged here, since Lin still looked exactly the same as Chihiro remembered.  
"Okay....but then why did he get turned back into a dragon again?"  
"That was his punishment for helping you escape. And Yubaba, as consumed by evil as she is, benefited in one more ways than one with this little arrangement. Even though she started buckling down right after he was revealed, Yubaba had already been planning her total domination. Haku's scandal was the perfect reason to get her plan in motion while remaining unsuspected... for the most part.  
"Of course, a handful of us who aren't scare into worshipping her knew she was up to no good. When is she not," Lin mumbled. "We're also the same people who were happy to see you break free from that old bat's wrath.  
"But, back on topic. Yubaba, I see right through her. She sees Haku as a threat. Yubaba figured that if he could help a girl escape this world, that he was capable of much more. If Haku was in his dragon form, and permanently, he could do nothing to stop her."  
Chihiro realized she was here to help break Yubaba's curse. "But we're dealing with a Yubaba curse. How will _I_ be able to break it?"  
Lin smacked her forehead. "Is your brain screwed on right, Chihiro? We've been talking about this subject, or at least dancing around it the whole time!"  
"Please don't tell me-- I can't--"  
"You love him, don't you?"  
Chihiro blushed. "Yeah, I think," she mumbled.  
"That's all it takes."  
Lin stood up, stretching. "If we're gonna get anything done tomorrow, you have to get some sleep. You're lucky tomorrow's my monthly day off..."  
Lin started towards the door, then stopped in her tracks. "Chihiro, just....don't beat yourself up about this. Everything that's happened, it was inevitable." Lin turned to face Chihiro. "And it wasn't anyone's fault." Chihiro nodded, then made up her bed.  
Curling up in it, her thoughts recapped the day's events. Before she drifted off into sleep, Chihiro wondered if she would wake up from this, if this was all a dream....  
_I don't want to wake up from this...._


	5. Ako

**Spirited Again~**

CHAPTER 4: Ako

"Come on, sleepyhead, move your butt along and get dressed already!"

The girl groaned from her position on the edge of the bed. She seemed as if she was still asleep.

Lin sneaked up behind Chihiro, taking advantage of the girl's zombie-like fatigue to pull the prank she'd been thinking about for a while. It couldn't hurt, and the girl would definitely snap out of it.

Chihiro screeched. "Li-_in_! What the--?!" Chihiro shook violently, scratching and clawing erratically at her back and neck as if convulsing.

Lin stifled a fit of laughter, letting out a single, hearty laugh. "Well, how else was I supposed to get you up? …Sheesh, you're acting like a crazy person… It was just Gorume."

Chihiro's eyes bulged, and she slowly turned her head to face Lin. "Wh-whaddya mean? Gorume?" She was scared to find out.

"My mutated worm," Lin felt around the bed sheets, and then let out an exclamation. "See?"

Lin roared with laughter as Chihiro screamed at the sight of the fat, foot-long worm, dangling and wriggling in front of her. "Trust me," Lin began, wiping away her tears of laughter, "if anything, Gorume is more scared of you than you are of him. Hell, what animal _wouldn't_ be, after seeing you have a near-seizure…."

Once the laughter died down, Chihiro strode indignantly over to the table, and picked up a change of clothes. "You know, it's not just that I'm tired. There's no place for me to dress, you know….in _private_…"

"Oh, right! Damn, you probably gotta 'go' right about now, anyhow…" Lin got up and wandered over to the wall opposite the burrow's entrance. She pulled a brush out of her apron, and quickly dusted off a layer of dirt, revealing a door. Lin inserted the other end of her brush into the newly-unearthed keyhole. She swung the door open and gestured to Chihiro.

After washing up, Chihiro sighed, and looked down at this new change of clothes that Lin brought her. She picked them up, unfolding and draping them across her. The clothes appeared to be just her size. She wondered where they could have come from – especially since they were obviously human clothes.

Chihiro began to change into the shorts, but then stopped as something caught her eye. Inside, embroidered along the pocket, was the name 'Ako'.

_Ako… Was she another human like me?_ Chihiro wondered, running her finger along the delicate, intricate embroidery before changing.

As she re-entered the main room, Lin clasped her hands together and sighed with relief. "Ah, great! They fit. Those were the only non-working clothes I could round up."

Chihiro nodded absently, absorbed in thoughts of who this Ako could possibly be…

Lin didn't seem to notice the girl's sudden change of mood, to Chihiro's relief. She didn't want to be a downer. "Alright then. Today's plan _is_," Lin said in a sing-song manner, "…look around for Haku in this forest. There's a river deep into it – I figure Haku'd feel somewhat at home there – that we could reach in about four hours' time, if we keep moving.

"Paying a visit to the river'll also give you the chance to wash your other clothes. I would've washed them myself, but duh. A non-human like me washing a human girl's clothes with my own – well, that's definitely suspicious."

Chihiro nodded again.

"So. Go on and get your clothes from last night, and then we can set off. I've packed the necessities and crap, as well as your emergency disguise."

"Disguise?" Chihiro called as she started back from the wash room.

"Well, there's no guarantee that Yubaba's spies and fanboys will take this day off to relax. So in case we run into any of 'em, you can put this mask on." Lin pulled out the mask, handing it to Chihiro just as she approached.

Chihiro looked it over curiously. "As long as we don't get caught."

About three and a half hours into their hike, Lin and Chihiro were just a few short miles from the river. They had stopped only twice so far, to quench their thirsts and catch their breaths.

Even though their rests were short and few, and they had been working for miles, Lin's stamina was about the same as when they started. Chihiro, however, could barely feel her legs, and was lagging paces behind Lin.

"LIN!" She called in a shaky, exhausted voice.

Lin turned around to find Chihiro bent over, resting her palms on her knees. "You're kidding me, right? Your strength… pathetic…. Don't they have some kind of fitness class in schools?"

Lin's knowledge of physical education shocked Chihiro, but she was too wearisome to talk more than necessary. She shrugged it off.

Lin mumbled something under her breath, and walked a few more feet to a bench-like log off the path. She plopped down, Chihiro soon following suit.

Handing Chihiro a strangely-shaped canteen, Lin drank from her own.

Chihiro unscrewed the lid, cautiously sniffed inside, and did a double-take. "Eww… Lin, what is this?" She whined, but took a small sip. It didn't taste half-bad!

Lin swallowed a chug before saying, matter-of-factly, "An energy drink made with dragon-fruit juice and the de-toxed venom of a local variety of viper."

Chihiro's eyes widened as she downed a gulp of the concoction. It was too late to spit it out.

Seeing the girl's petrified expression, Lin laughed airily. "It's been purified of its poison, weren't you listening? Seriously, drink that all up. You're going to need a hell of a lot more energy for the trip back."

"Well, if it isn't Lin!"

Lin and Chihiro both turned to see a tiny figure bobbing closer to them from the distant horizon.

Lin fumbled behind her back. "Put this on. _Now!_" Lin hissed, handing Chihiro the mask from behind.

Chihiro nodded, and threw the mask on as quickly as she could without dropping it. The figure was still a good distance away.

Chihiro felt a strange sensation, as if a blanket of tickly feathers was slowly being draped around her. She watched as the powerful little mask transformed her into a creature similar to Lin, lengthening her hair, paling her skin to Lin's same milky glow, and a work uniform.

Chihiro began to let out a small gasp, but Lin pinched her. "Just act cool. Follow my lead." Lin mumbled.

The figure bounded up to them a minute later. He was one of those toad-like creatures Chihiro remembered from her first visit.

"Ah, Kaji, so good to see you," Lin said in an overly-pleasant voice that Chihiro knew to be fake.

The toad smirked. "So, are you here to finally finish that mission, Lin?"

"Ha, are you kidding me, Kaji? I fully intend to _relax_ today. Yubaba and the mission haven't even crossed my mind. Until now…" She mumbled.

Kaji nodded, continuing to smirk. He then took notice of Chihiro. "Hey, who's this?"

Chihiro gulped. She sat there, frozen.

"….Oh, this is…Mana, she's new. I'm trying to get her situated here."

Chihiro nodded. "Yes, hi. Pleased to meet you, Kaji," she squeaked. Chihiro gasped, unable to contain her surprise as she realized her voice was still her own.

Kaji arched his brow curiously. "Yes….likewise."

Chihiro lost her focus on what was happening a few moments later. Lin and Kaji were apparently deep in a conversation.

"Well, we should get going now – I still have to show Mana a few other things here in the forest."

Kaji nodded, and watched as Lin and 'Mana' started off.

Chihiro felt something itchy on her leg, and she stopped mid-walk to scratch at it.

Little did she know, Kaji was still watching them suspiciously. "A _HUMAN_?!"

Lin whirled around to Chihiro, gasping. The backs of her legs and head were becoming visible through the disguise, her human stench wafting through.

The toad started to run now, along an alternate path leading to the bath house. "I knew it Lin! I always knew you couldn't be trusted!" Kaji spat, glancing over his shoulder. Lin wasn't far behind him now.

Eventually she overtook the toad, pinning him down to the ground. She forced his arms to the ground as he tried to wriggle free. "For your sake, I hope you're not planning on telling Yubaba." She snarled. "Remember? That time I caught you stealing our most valuable bath salts? The ones Yubaba paid nearly a fortune to acquire? Those super _rare_ salts –"

"Okay, Lin, alright! I get it. I won't tell if you don't. But just know, you can't hold it over me forever. Someday you'll do something even more terrible than my stealing those salts. So don't expect me to keep quiet forever, Lin."

Lin grunted, then reluctantly got up, throwing him aside. "Please. If she didn't have you so damned mind-controlled, you would know anything I do couldn't _possibly_ compare to Yubaba's offenses."

Kaji looked wildly at Lin, rubbing his shoulder. Still clutching his arm, he shook his head and walked away.

Lin strode back over to Chihiro, casually and calmly, as though nothing had happened. Chihiro stood frozen in her spot. Even before, during her first time at the bath house, she had never seen Lin act so gruffly, so seriously. Lin just exhibited an opposition, an attitude towards another creature like her over Yubaba.

Lin reached Chihiro, laughing at her stunned expression. "What's up, kid? Everything's going to be fine. Kaji's too scared of Yubaba to tell her anything."

Chihiro shook her head, her face stony. "Is your real name….Ako?"

Lin froze. Her eyes widened momentarily, then fell to the ground.

"Yes, my real identity is Ako…a human."


	6. Lin

**Spirited Again~**

Chapter 5: Lin

"I suppose we have some time to kill…we're only about ten minutes from the river, and we made it in less than the expected time." Lin sighed, and leaned up against a tree. Chihiro followed suit, though she was more steadying herself against the tree rather than relaxing against it.

The two remained silent for a while. Chihiro broke the silence, speaking for the first time since asking Lin about her identity. "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. I understand."

Lin shook her head, waving a hand dismissively. "Nah, it's…it's okay. I just haven't talked about this in years." She sank to the ground.

"I was about your age, maybe a year older, when I first happened upon this world. I was exploring the area just as you and your parents were. I was looking around the restaurants, really exploring them. I was so intrigued…

"After about a half an hour of wandering around, I was suddenly stopped by a boy about my age."

"Haku?!" Chihiro wondered aloud.

"Yep. Haku then tried to help me out. He did all he could to keep me hidden while he figured out a way to get me back to the human world. It worked…for a few days.

"Eventually, one of the bathhouse workers – from back then, mind you – stumbled upon the hiding place, with me still in it. Haku wasn't as important to Yubaba as he is now – well, _was_, until recently – so he couldn't protect me anymore.

"I was taken to Yubaba almost immediately. Yubaba was disgusted with me and my snarky, teen attitude, but she made a deal with me…Even though the word 'deal' doesn't seem to cut it…"

"What was the deal?"

"Yubaba would give me a job at the bathhouse in exchange for not turning me into a pig." Lin sighed.

"That's terrible!" Chihiro shrieked.

"Yeah…Yubaba's been the same heinous witch you know her as for wa-ay too long…

"Of course I accepted the deal. I wasn't as eager to get back home as you were. …My family life was pretty….crappy, to say the least. My parents were in a nasty divorce, and they _hated_ each other. During the whole thing, I became just another 'thing' for them to fight over the possession of. They treated me just like they treated that hideous antique lamp they both wanted so badly.

"Anyhow, Yubaba took my real name, Ako, as apart of my contract, and gave me the name Lin. I worked happily at the bathhouse, enjoying the freedom from my other life.

"But then one day I came across my old clothes," Lin nodded at Chihiro's current outfit, "in the back of my drawer. After remembering my name, I…. I felt so _empty _inside, and so…lonely. I knew everyone really accepted me there, and my friends became a sort of makeshift family to me, but… I couldn't help missing my real family.

"I did remember the way they acted, how their anger and hatred towards each other had changed them, but… parents are parents. I realized that I still loved them, and what I'd been feeling before was confusion and distress, but not resentment.

"I then began to plot my escape, with the help of Haku once again. We came up with a foolproof plan within a week, and set it into motion the day after, when a large group of spirits was scheduled to arrive."

"What did you do?" Chihiro asked, curiosity now overflowing.

"You mean what_ Haku_ did. He was the one to carry out the plan… But yeah, Haku… he created total chaos." Lin stopped, chuckling. "He hid the bath tokens, soiled all the tubs with caked-on mud, and messed up the plumbing system. While everyone in the bathhouse was scrambling to get the place back to order before the guests arrived, I slipped away and returned back to my world."

Chihiro blinked in confusion, puzzled. "Then… if you got back home, then why are you here?"

Lin turned her head away. The whole time she had been retelling her story to Chihiro, an ache inside her was growing. Now that she was just about to explain the most painful part of it all, her ache was becoming too much to handle. She felt as though her heart and lungs were being crushed like stress relief balls – and that she was the outlet for all that stress.

When she finally mustered the emotional and physical strength to go on, she continued slowly. "I managed to escape from the spirit world for about six months. When I reentered, I… was about ten years older. I was away from the human world for nearly a decade. By then, my parents' search for me, their missing and possibly abducted daughter, was deemed futile by the police. I know all this because when I began looking for my parents, I first stumbled across some news articles…

"The search for my parents had lasted six months, until I finally found their whereabouts. They were stilled married, apparently, and they were living in a city hundreds of miles away from our… their old one. I had mixed feelings about visiting them, and debated whether I should see them, possibly giving them heart attacks, or just start a new life…"

Chihiro was even more confused. "But wait, how come so many years went by in the human world, while only a few minutes seemed to pass when I was gone?"

"That's the thing – it was actually a few _hours_ for you… But in my case, a decade had gone by because it took me so much longer to remember my real identity. Because you recovered your memoires not even a week after coming here, the rate at which human-time elapsed for your part of the world was lessened to a mere crawl.

"Anyhow… then Haku caught up with me, before I could finally decide whether to pay a visit to my parents or not. He didn't even seem surprised at how much I'd aged… But anyhow, he said my life was in danger here in the human world.

"He said that because so much time had passed by in the human world while I was gone, my rapid aging could pose a threat to my body – that my system and mind couldn't handle it." Lin paused, exhaling. "And that I could die at any moment."

Chihiro couldn't help but let out a small gasp. She'd been _trying _to remain silent throughout the 'storytelling' in case Lin might change her mind about it. Thankfully, Lin didn't seem to hear her, and resumed her story after a moment of pause.

"I was so terrified. I couldn't speak. Though I had physically aged, my mind was still that of a fourteen-year-old girl. …When I finally _could_ get the words out, I couldn't stop them from coming.

"Haku calmed me down just enough for him to continue. He told me that the only way to save myself would be to return to the spirit world, and never leave it again.

"I knew that by doing this, leaving my world forever, would mean sacrificing my old life, but I didn't want to sacrifice my life altogether. And I was willing to try anything. So, I let Haku take me back."

Lin stopped, clearing her throat and taking a sip of the foul-smelling energy drink. Chihiro's heart was aching for Lin – she couldn't believe the things that Lin went through. The Lin that Chihiro knew was a tough and thick-skinned girl. Chihiro guessed that her toughness came from surviving those hardships. She then shook away these thoughts as she noticed Lin preparing to go on.

"When we'd just left the human world, a thought came to me: what would happen to me here, and would Yubaba find me and punish me for escaping?

"Haku reassured me that I wouldn't be returned to the bathhouse, rather, he'd take me to a small village nearby. 'And anyway, all is forgiven,' he'd said. This set off a warning bell in my mind. …I was suspicious for good reason, too."

Now Chihiro was too interested _not_ to say something. "Really? Oh my god Lin, what happened?"

Lin sighed. "Well, Haku lied to me." She said simply. "The whole thing was a trap, and I just walked right into it… I couldn't believe that Haku would betray me like that. He was the only one I trusted in this world…

"Anyhow…. He ended up taking me right to Yubaba. He didn't take me directly to the bathhouse, obviously – I would've figured it out. Instead, he led me down a path that wound discreetly around the bathhouse, where we met with Yubaba just a few minutes later.

"I couldn't believe it…"

"Haku, how did this happen?!" Ako shrieked, jumping behind him.

Haku pushed her forward, gently but firmly. "Just as you wanted, Yubaba." He didn't dare look at the girl.

Ako gasped, releasing her grip on Haku's shoulders. "Haku… what––"

"I'm sorry, Ako. I had to do it," Haku still faced away from her, but his head was tilted downward in shame.

Yubaba cackled, staring at Ako with maniacal eyes. "Oh, dea-_rie_…. I'm so sorry your little Haku betrayed you. I can't _imagine_ how much it _hurts_ to find out your friend is a little _RAT_." Yubaba spat.

Ako was in a state of shock. So much had happened, Ako was overwhelmed. She walked slowly around, standing in front of Haku. "Did you really…_betray _me? Haku?" Ako whispered, her face glistening with tears.

Haku looked from the ground up, looking past Ako and at Yubaba. "I did my part – will you keep your word?"

Yubaba chuckled. "Ironic how you still care about this girl, even after lying to her…" Yubaba shook her head, sighing. "I don't get why you even bother, but, yes. I'll keep her alive, and won't turn her into would-be bacon…"

Ako quivered.

"Oh, stop acting so surprised, Lin. You knew he works for me. He _had _to confess to save his _own_ life. I knew all along he helped you escape, and I kept him captive for those six months you spent in the human world, and almost years in ours. He just wouldn't cough it up, tell me what I wanted to hear…

"Finally, when I told him I would go out and find you myself, he got _scared_ enough to talk. He made a deal with me: if he complied, I would not only keep him alive, but you as well."

By now Ako had turned to face Yubaba, but gave a longing glance back at Haku. "So, I ––"

Yubaba huffed. "Get _over_ here, Lin!" She waved an index finger, as if to beckon the girl forward, and she literally pulled her forward with magic.

"Now then… what to do with you… you need to learn a lesson about trying to break a contract…" Yubaba tapped her obese double-chin in thought, then exclaimed, "Ah! Perfect!"

Ako was still frozen on the spot, only able to blink.

Haku, concern now defining his expression, stepped forward. "Yubaba ––"

"Now, now, Haku, I'm not as malicious as you think I am. If anything, I'm one to keep my word. Now just step _ASIDE_," at this, she froze Haku in his place, "and let me…"

A loud boom emanated through as a cloud of smoke and dust filled the air around Ako. When the smoke finally subsided, Lin was still coughing and trying to see as a roar of laughter erupted from Yubaba.

"It's rather fitting, Haku, don't you think?"

"What did you _do_ to her, Yubaba!?"

"What _did_ Yubaba turn you into?" Chihiro asked bluntly, not even attempting to disguise her horrified confusion as to Lin's species of…whatever. She clapped her hands over her mouth, instantly ashamed.

Lin laughed lightly at Chihiro's sudden outburst. "It's okay, kid. I couldn't even figure it out myself until Yubaba told me." She stopped, shaking her head in mock amusement. "Apparently, I'm part reptilian for my slithery, slippery ways; part feline for my attitude, sneakiness and mischievousness behavior, and part demon for having qualities that both reptiles and felines share with demons."

Chihiro started to cry for the first time during Lin's confession, even for the first time that day.

Lin came out of a short reverie, and glanced around. "Hm? What's that noise… It sounds – oh, Chi-_hiro_…."

"That – that's so h-horrible! I can't…" Chihiro stumbled on her knees over to Lin, embracing her in a tight hug. "And before you say anything, I know a person never stops loving hugs, even _if _they've been turned into a cat-snake demon." Chihiro mumbled into Lin's shoulder, tears moistening Lin's back.

Lin rested her chin on Chihiro's head, a single tear falling from her eye. She laughed softly. "Yeah, you never do stop loving to be hugged."


End file.
